Study Group Says Virginia Needs, Can Support 15,000-seat Arena

August 03, 1989|By DAVE FAIRBANK Staff Writer

A University of Virginia study has recommended that the school needs and can support a 15,000-seat arena and that preliminary plans should proceed.

But the study also recommended that fund-raising for the new arena, with a projected cost of approximately $40 million, be incorporated into an overall, university-wide capital campaign, pushing a target date for construction well into the next decade.

"With those uncertainties, it would be folly for me to talk about a ground-breaking date," Virginia Athletic Director Jim Copeland said at a press conference Wednesday.

The study, commissioned by the university and conducted over the past 14 months, made three primary recommendations:

*A 15,000-seat arena can be justified, both in terms of demand and financial feasibility.

*The new arena should be built in the University Hall/Massie Road area of Charlottesville.

*The university should proceed with preliminary planning for the arena on a funds-available basis, but because of the magnitude of the effort, it should be undertaken only as part of a fund-raising campaign by the university.

"We have decided, based on the study, that there is a demand for it and there is a market and we have decided to take the next step on it," Copeland said.

The university's Sports Arena Feasibility Study Committee, a nine-member group chaired by Vice President for Business Affairs and Finance Ray Hunt Jr., recommended that three options be further explored:

*Expand University Hall, the smallest arena in the Atlantic Coast Conference with a capacity of 8,264.

*Build a new arena on the north side of Massie Road - across the road from the main entrance of U. Hall.

*Demolish U. Hall and build a new arena in its place.

University President Robert O'Neil, who accepted the feasibility study's recommendation in principle, also said a fourth option should be considered - building a new arena adjacent to U. Hall, so that utilities and other services would be more easily adaptable than across Massie Road.

The committee recommended that at least half of the total project cost should come from private funds, which would include the sale of special seating privileges. The remaining half must be supported by other sources, such as additional student fees.

A new basketball arena also must wait because Virginia's athletic department is in the midst of two other major projects - a $10 million football support facility and a 4,000-seat soccer stadium.